Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race: The maxi thriller - decided in the last mile
Tatjana Pokorny
· 28.12.2023
It's worth watching this final again in the replay: After 1 day, 19 hours, 3 minutes and 58 seconds, the Australian 100-foot maxi "LawConnect" won the 78th Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race by time sailed.
I can't believe the result" (Christian Beck)
After a thrilling gybing duel in light wind poker, the "LawConnect" team had a 51-second lead at the finish line to triumph over their perennial rivals and title defenders on "Andoo Comanche". It was the second closest decision in the history of the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race after the seven-second thriller between "Condor" and "Apollo" in 1982.
"I can't believe the result," said the overjoyed owner Christian Beck at the finish harbour of the 628 nautical mile Christmas classic from Sydney to Hobart on Tasmania. "This is a dream come true. I would never have thought that this was possible."
There were people who could no longer see" (Christian Beck)
Christian Beck reviewed the highly exciting decision after mooring at Kings Pier in Hobart: "After they had taken the lead just before the finish line, we didn't see any chance of overtaking them again. But then a gust came - and it worked. To be honest: it was a total surprise."
When asked about his crew's nerves in the final minutes of the race, Beck said: "There were people who couldn't look at it. It was very nerve-wracking." After three second places in a row recently, the jubilation on "LawConnect" was exuberant.
78th Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race: "Andoo Comanche" loses the duel after leading by two nautical miles in Storm Bay
"You enjoy a success like this even more," said Beck after the triumph over the highly favoured crew on "Andoo Comanche", who had already built up a two-nautical-mile lead in Storm Bay on the way to the finish. However, they were then caught by the chasers on "LawConnect" in a spectacular final duel on the Derwant River.
The lead changed hands five times on the home straight. It was easy to see that the crew on "LawConnect" managed the better gybes and the better accelerations in the light wind final sprint. It was only 50 metres before the finish that the "LawConnect" team managed to prevail in the thrilling slow-motion duel with the last gybe.
Our Sailing Master Tony Mutter and tactician Chris Nicholson were key figures in this success" (Christian Beck)
Owner Beck landed in the harbour water immediately after arriving in Hobart, before his crew lifted the J. H. Illingworth Challenge Cup into the sky above Hobart and enjoyed an extensive champagne shower. Christian Beck then singled out two of his sailors in particular: "Our Sailing Master Tony Mutter and tactician Chris Nicholson were key figures in this success."
Both are well known as multiple round the world sailors from the Ocean Race and other professional series. Christian Beck laughed and said of his sailors at this 78th edition of the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race: "They had a lot of challenges to overcome. Especially the boat, which we jokingly call a 'box'. Compared to 'Comanche', it really is a box. I know it looks good on TV, but compared to 'Comanche' it's rather crude. 'Comanche' is a beautiful boat, better in every way. So it's incredible that they've managed to beat 'Comanche'."
Christopher Opielok's "Rockall VIII" scrapes into the top ten of the IRC rankings
Christian Beck continued with the comparison: "Secondly, they had (Ed.: his crew) a pretty tight budget. And thirdly, they had to deal with five entrepreneurs on board - including myself. None of us know much about racing. So they had to overcome all these hurdles and still won the race. That's an incredible achievement!"
The crew around the only German owner and skipper in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race also put in a strong performance: Christopher Opielok and his team on "Rockall VIII" sailed towards the finish harbour on Thursday morning German time in 51st place in the line honours classification. In the IRC classification, Opielok, his co-skipper Felix Oehme, sailmaker Klaas Simon and their team-mates had thus worked their way up to eleventh place in the field of 89 out of 103 three boats that had started.
Three-way battle for the Tattersall Cup
With around 260 nautical miles to the finish, a top ten finish for "Rockall VIII" was even within sight. After dropping out early in his Syndey Hobart Race premiere in 2017, Christopher Opielok had only set himself one goal for his second attempt on the JPK 10.80, which he had purchased especially for the race: to finish!
The coveted Tattersall Cup for the fastest boat by calculated time continued to be contested on Thursday by the three leading IRC boats: the Reichel Pugh 66 "Alive", the Reichel Pugh Maxi 72 "URM Group", on which none other than America's Cup design legend Grant Simmer acts as Sailing Master, and the Reichel Pugh 69 "Moneypenny".
